MERS - COV - WHO has been informed of an additional eight confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia.

MERS - COV - WHO has been informed of an additional eight confirmed cases in Saudi Arabia.HT: Croft.

Thanks to Helen Branswell for tweeting the link to this just-published WHO statement:  Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) - update.

WHO has been informed of an additional eight laboratory-confirmed cases of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection in Saudi Arabia. 

The two cases who died were 54 and 51 years-old from Riyadh, who were suffering from pre-existing chronic illnesses. The other patients include: 

• a 50-year-old woman with an underlying medical condition, from Riyadh, who became ill on 1 August 2013 and is currently hospitalized, now off mechanical ventilation; 

• a 59-year-old woman with underlying medical conditions, from Riyadh, who became ill on 23 July 2013 and is currently hospitalized in intensive care unit and is in critical condition; 

• a 50-year-old woman with underlying medical conditions, from Riyadh, who is currently hospitalized in intensive care unit; 

• a 70-year-old man with underlying medical conditions, from Riyadh, who is currently hospitalized in intensive care unit; 

• a 31-year-old man with underlying medical conditions, from Asir, who is currently hospitalized in intensive care unit; and 

• a 55-year-old man from Asir who is a contact of a confirmed case, and is asymptomatic. 

Globally, from September 2012 to date, WHO has been informed of a total of 102 laboratory-confirmed cases of infection with MERS-CoV, including 49 deaths.

As Branswell notes in a series of tweets, this report doesn't include the two recent Qatar cases, or today's Saudi cases.

Hmmm.....The Saudi authorities say 84 people have been infected

Related info:  Update on distribution of MERS cases.

Dr Ziad Memish discusses MERS in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)